Temporary or semi-permanent support surfaces have been used for roadways, remote jobsites, industrial staging areas and the like in an ever-increasing myriad of industries, such as the construction, military, oilfield, transportation, disaster response, utilities and entertainment industries. These support surfaces are often made up of heavy duty, durable, all-weather thermoplastic mats, which are reusable and interlock together to form the support surface. In some instances, it is necessary or desirable to provide apparatus and methods to electrically ground at least a portion of the support surface.
For example, it may be necessary or desirable to use a temporary or semi-permanent electrically grounded support surface as part of an Equi-Potential Zone (EPZ). The EPZ is an arrangement typically designed so that dangerous electric potential differences do not appear across the body of a person working on or near ground-based machinery. An EPZ is often used during projects that involve working in close proximity to an energized power line. For example, in performing overhead power line (OHL) projects, the EPZ may prevent the installation crew from being subject to an electric shock caused by, for example, a circuit flash from the energized line to the conductors being worked on. In the EPZ, the equipment and personnel are on a work surface that is electrically conductive and grounded to provide a natural path for large electrical voltages to flow.
Presently know solutions for temporary, or semi-permanent, electrically grounded support surfaces include the use of aluminum access plates bolted together at each corner. These plates are believed to have one or more disadvantage. For example, the plates may not overlap one another and therefore require a flat underlying surface. Otherwise, the edges of the plate(s) may protrude above the underlying surface and form a trip hazard. For another example, the corners of the plates may need to be bolted together using small straps that may also form trip hazards. Often, these systems require a nut and bolt at each corner with the nut on the underside, an arrangement which is labor intensive and cumbersome. For yet another example, the aluminum plates may have considerable scrap value and thus require 24-hour security to prevent theft. For still a further example, these plates may not be useful or adapted to otherwise serve as support surfaces when electrical grounding is not required or needed.
It should be understood that the above-described features, capabilities and disadvantages are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope or subject matter of the appended claims or those of any related patent application or patent. Thus, none of the appended claims or claims of any related application or patent should be limited by the above discussion or construed to address, include or exclude each or any of the above-cited features, capabilities or disadvantages merely because of the mention thereof herein.
Accordingly, there exists a need for improved systems, articles and methods useful in connection with providing an electrically grounded support surface having one or more of the attributes or capabilities described or shown in, or as may be apparent from, the various portions of this patent application.